You could have the dreaded sticky/worn front struts that I think my Xantia has - even though they don't creak or groan, the ride can intermitantly become fidgety almost harsh - and the front ride quality seems to be VERY sensitive to the ride height... just 10mm too low makes the ride a lot worse.Gus wrote:Thank you all again for your help, I really appreciate it. Last night, I did the Citaerobics for maybe 3 or 4 times (normal height->maximum height->minimum height->normal height). I went for a drive right after that and the problem was gone!!! My beloved XM was back to normal, magic carpet ride again.
HOWEVER, today it got hard again, like before... Well, not as bad as before, but it just feels like a normal car again. Bugger!!!!!
At least, now I know that all the spheres are OK, since they worked brilliantly last night. So, now what?
Greasing the front struts gives a temporary reprieve of a couple of weeks but then the harshness returns. Doing Citroebics also gives a temporary reprieve which only lasts a day or two. (I presume the full excursion helps to lubricate the strut slightly)
As of yet I havn't found a cure
Part of my problem seems to be that the front height corrector is overshooting a bit in height corrections (thus causing inconsistant ride height) and is sometimes making height adjustments to the front while driving - which I think is caused by the spring assembly next to the height corrector needing lubricating, which I will look at on the weekend.
But the ride quality shouldn't be so height sensitive in the first place...
More than 5/10 times is highly unlikely to do anything. In fact I personally have never noticed any improvement past one or two times that can't be attributed to something else.I've read somewhere in the forum that the Citaerobics should be performed for 5 to 10 times. Should I just go ahead and do it some more? Am I right in thinking "the more, the better"?
My feeling is that the temporary improvement in ride quality that some people see after a full up/down cycle is simply a temporary improvement in the sliding of the front suspension struts after exercising them through their full travel, and that the real problem could be the bushes are worn in the struts.
This theory is partly confirmed (in my opinion) because this nonsense of the ride temporarily improving after exercising the height up and down that I see with Xantia's did NOT happen on older models such as CX and GS which dont have the McPherson struts - both of which I had driven for many years without EVER seeing the phenomenon of the ride quality varying randomly and getting better after Citreobics.
Unfortunately since the struts are very expensive its not something that can easily be proved without wasting a lot of money, so for now it will remain an unsolved mystery on my car
Regards,
Simon